The Wednesday Post

Greetings from the Oregon Coast
The Avatar, after 300 miles of virtual running, reaches his starting point.

Last Saturday, the Avatar moved on from the little town of Pacific City, Oregon, and finally hit the beach.  That thin sandy strip where the continent meets the sea!  It's kind of a pain to run on for "Clydesdales," as heavier sorts of runners like myself are politely called in the jargon.  But the Avatar is insubstantial and weightless, so it wasn't nearly such a big deal for him.

From the Pacific City beach, he headed north to cross the headland at Cape Lookout.  Having done this a couple of times on a bicycle, I'm just glad it was him slogging up and down this sheer 800-foot finger of rock, and not me.

After Cape Lookout, the route skirted inland around Netarts Bay.  At the little village of Netarts, on the southeast corner of this postcard, the Avatar hit the beach again.

And here he is on a route that I have run a few times myself, down the beach towards the nearly vertical village of Oceanside, Oregon.

In Oceanside, he'll run by the cabin where Mrs.5000 and I sometimes stay, and then bid farewell to the blue Pacific as he sets his course for... the blue Atlantic!  In fact, I have a pretty good idea where he'll hit the beach on the East Coast, assuming my life, running career, and Avatar all last that long.